The Schauenforst castle ruins are located on the foremost spur of a narrow limestone tongue, which extends from the higher Eichberg in an almost southerly direction into the Hexengrund. The light-colored tower, which just peeks out above the tops of the old, tall beech trees on the Schlossberg, catches the eye from afar. The castle can be reached quickly from Dorndorf and even more easily from Rödelwitz, but the path up the hill always encourages you to linger and look out over the beautiful landscape. Schauenforst is the scenic and historical landmark of the "Hexengrund", as the wide, graceful valley of the Wiedbach is popularly known.

It is not known in which years and by whom the castle was built. It is usually assumed that Landgrave Ludwig IV of Thuringia, the husband of Elisabeth of Hungary, built the castle during a feud with Count Hermann II of Orlamünde in 1222 or 1223. It is also possible that Schauenforst, like Weissenburg Castle, was built as a residential castle by the Ostro-Hungarian line shortly after the division of the Orlamünde earldom (1248). The documentary sources also begin in the second half of the 13th century. From 1281 to 1319, the Lords of Schauenforst appear in legal negotiations. Heinrich von Orlamünde probably resided at Schauenforst until his death (1357 at the latest). There is also no chronological record of the castle's presumably repeated destruction.

Whether Schauenforst was destroyed in the War of the Counts in 1345 or in the Saxon Fratricidal War (1446-1451), as is usually mentioned in the literature, is uncertain. The owners changed several times, but the contracts say little or nothing about the condition of the castle. It was only in a document from 1662 that Schauenforst was described as "deserted".

Today, the Schauenforst Castle Association in Rödelwitz looks after the grounds and invites visitors to the "Schauenforst Festival" every year in July. Groups can book in advance to stop for a barbecue or spend a cozy evening in the castle.